Esteve puts the spotlight on his purchasing strategy: "The thickness is yet to come."

BarcelonaEsteve is in the midst of a growth phase. The strategy the Catalan pharmaceutical company initiated two years ago, with the entry into its capital of the German fund Lubea with the aim of increasing resources for future acquisitions, continues to lead the way for the company, which comes from buying the year 2024 the specialist firm in rare and ultra-rare diseases HRA Pharma Rare Diseases, as well as two medicines: Mepact, for the treatment of bone cancer, and Increlex, for severe primary insulin-like growth factor deficiency.

"The bulk is yet to come," explained Esteve's financial director, Roser Gomila, on Wednesday, referring to the company's strategy in this area, which will continue through the acquisition of new products and also new companies in the segment. pharma. "If a few months ago we thought we could invest €1 billion, with the agreements already closed we're a third of the way there," he added. This third of the way refers specifically to the purchases of HRA Pharma Rare Diseases and both drugs, which in total have represented an investment of approximately €375 million.

In parallel, for the segment of manufacturing of active ingredients for third parties – known as CDMO – the growth strategy involves increasing production capacity. Esteve currently has two plants under construction in Celrà and Shangyu (China), which will be activated in 2027 with new technologies. "For pharma Growth will be inorganic, while at CMDO we are investing in increasing production capacity and manufacturing active pharmaceutical ingredients," said communications director Maria Àngels Valls.

Regarding the purchase of products, the company's CEO, Staffan Schüberg, said that they do not want to involve those who do not want the 'market', and buy them at a risk-free phase because clinical trials have often already been conducted. We are innovators through research and development, not through research," explained Schüberg.

To carry out this offensive, the company has a comfortable financial situation thanks to the economic results of 2024, which have allowed it to have 500 million euros of treasury, of which 240 million are in cashHowever, Esteve also plans to borrow to meet these two-thirds of the planned €1 billion. "We have available cash, possibly financing that will accompany the cash, with an internal limit of three times EBITDA," explained Gomila, who also reviewed the main economic figures for the past financial year, which closed with a net profit of 75 million euros, 25% more than in 2023, thanks to financial and non-recurring returns. "It is not a business growth, but rather a growth of.

Esteve's turnover grew to 744 million euros, 5% more, of which 300 come from pharma –which grew 15%, mainly due to the integration of the HRA business and organic growth, and the remaining 443 million from CDMO, which fell slightly 0.7% after maintaining sales but being affected by the post-pandemic restructuring of the product portfolio. Esteve has more than 2,059 employees, 6.6% more than last year, of which 1,316 are located in Spain.